


Beach Day

by DragonHeartstring360



Series: Inheritance Cycle [4]
Category: The Inheritance Cycle - Christopher Paolini
Genre: Day At The Beach, F/M, Fluff, Gen, Other, Some steamy kissing but no more than that
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-08
Updated: 2019-07-08
Packaged: 2020-06-24 17:36:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,061
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19728490
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DragonHeartstring360/pseuds/DragonHeartstring360
Summary: Imagine taking Murtagh and Thorn to the beach for the first time.





	Beach Day

**Author's Note:**

> Y/N: your name. D/N: Dragon's name. Nothing but fluff.

You gaped at Murtagh across the table in a quiet corner of the great hall. “You’ve _never_ been to a beach?”

Murtagh swallowed, filling his mouth with food to avoid answering. When you didn’t continue, he merely shrugged his shoulders.

“Even if you and Thorn hadn’t been traveling for years, there’s a beach barely a half hour’s walk from where we’re sitting. How have you two never been there?”

Murtagh sighed. “It’s always crowded with Eragon’s students.”

“Well, of course it is, it’s a _beach_ and it’s summer.”

“I’m not exactly the most popular person, nor am I fond of crowds. The same could be said for Thorn.”

It was your turn to sigh. “The students know and respect you both—”

 _And yet still give us both a wide berth_ , Thorn chimed in. _We’re not trying to gather pity, just pointing out a fact_.

“That doesn’t mean you’re not allowed to live your lives.” You could feel your dragon hum in agreement in the back of your mind while they hunted for their own dinner out with Thorn. “You’re both free now. You _are_ allowed to enjoy yourselves.”

Murtagh leaned back in his chair, inspecting something deep in his glass of wine. He finally looked up at you and smiled lopsidedly beneath dark hair, his grey eyes twinkling in amusement. “What do we need to go to a beach for? I have my own view right here.”

You snorted and rolled your eyes. “That was bad.”

 _It was,_ Thorn agreed.

“Hey!” Murtagh protested and you laughed, drawing a few stares from the other students finishing up their dinner. You weren’t very fond of crowds yourself, so coming a little later than everyone else to enjoy supper in the mess hall at Eragon’s Riders’ Academy on Vroengard had become a routine for the two of you. Not that you minded having Murtagh all to yourself, even though you practically lived in each other’s quarters anyway.

 _Eragon wants to see us_ , Thorn suddenly interrupted, rumbles of laughter echoing after. 

“Why?” Murtagh asked.

 _He wants us to help with a demonstration tomorrow and wants to practice in the outer field while no one else is around_.

Murtagh nodded, sliding from his seat and bending towards you. He paused halfway towards you, glancing at the small groups of students meandering around the hall. You felt something transpire privately between him and Thorn before Murtagh gently cupped your chin and kissed you deeper than you expected. Normally, when there were even one or two other people around, all you would get was a quick peck. Not that you were complaining. Maybe he’d decided it was finally worth it to take a risk? It wasn’t as if your relationship was a secret anyway. Maybe if he was willing to take a risk like that, you could convince him to go to the beach with you.

He smiled as he pulled away, gently brushing his thumb over your cheek. “I’ll see you tonight?”

You grinned. “Of course.”

A few hours later, when D/N informed you that Murtagh had stepped out to take a night ride with Thorn before falling asleep curled up next to you, you knocked on Eragon’s door. He smiled when he saw you. “Y/N! What can I do for you?”

“I need a little help with something.”

* * *

Murtagh came crashing through the trees, his face frantic. “Y/N! What’s wrong?” He frowned, pulling up short in front of you as he saw you lounging against D/N at the edge of the forest. Thorn came crashing through the brush a moment later, skidding to a stop as he saw Murtagh standing in front of him. Unfortunately, he wasn’t fast enough, pushing Murtagh forward with his nose.

You suppressed a laugh as Murtagh was sent sprawling to the ground with a rather undignified sound. He grumbled as he climbed to his feet, dusting his pants off as he made his way over to you. You couldn’t contain your laughter anymore as you noticed two twigs sticking up out of his hair like horns. 

“What?” he asked, growing more annoyed by the second as laughter rumbled deep in Thorn’s and D/N’s chest. Thorn huffed, sending the twigs and Murtagh’s hair flying to obscure his face. He shoved his dark locks back, muttering something involving “stupid good for nothing lizard.” “So what was this emergency?” He looked at you skeptically.

“The emergency is that you’ve never been to a beach.”

He sighed and ran a hand down his face. “Y/N, I thought something had happened to you. Do you know how worried I’ve been and how fast we both came down here?”

“I’m sorry, but it was the only way I knew of to get you two down here.” You paused. “And technically, that part was D/N’s idea, so that’s not my fault.”

 _It was not!_ your dragon snorted. _All right, maybe I told them to send you a message, but not one as cryptic as that_.

Murtagh glanced towards the tree line, where the dirt and roots eventually bled into the sand and waves. You could hear the waves crashing just beyond and could smell the saltwater on the gentle breeze that played with your and Murtagh’s hair. “So the assembly Eragon called, but said we didn’t have to attend…”

“The beach is all ours.”

He smiled and shook his head. “You’re stubborn as hell, has anyone ever told you that?”

You shrugged, the corners of your lips lifting. “Maybe once or twice.” You grabbed his hand and tugged before he could say no. “Come on.”

Murtagh hesitated at the edge of the forest, but eventually gave in once you tugged on his hand once more. Your shoes began to sink further as you made your way onto the beach. You paused to take off your shoes, Murtagh hesitating before following suit. You tugged once more, but a glance back told you that you didn’t have to. Murtagh followed you without hesitation this time, his eyes bright and wide in awe as he watched the waves crash below. You two finally stopped at the edge of the surf, Murtagh gripping your hand tightly. You glanced back to see D/N similarly leading Thorn down the beach. He set a huge foot down, picking it back up again to inspect the bits of sand now stuck to it. The ruby dragon took a hesitant step forward and set his foot down just as the water raced to join him.

 _It’s cold!_ Thorn cried, yanking his foot back up out of the water, flinging wet sand against Murtagh’s leg in the process.

“Hey!” Murtagh protested, turning towards his dragon. At the sight of him rearing his wings to fly, Murtagh turned so his muscular frame blocked yours from the cloud of sand that arose as the dragon took off, your dragon not far behind him.

You gently laid a hand on Murtagh’s chest in thanks, glancing around the beach. Eragon had held up his end of the bargain; the beach was completely empty. 

A hand gently clasped your face before Murtagh’s warm lips were on yours, drinking greedily. You pressed yourself against him, relaxing against his chest. His hand came up to tangle in your hair and you would’ve pressed things further if a loud roar hadn’t filled the sky. The pair of you broke away to see your dragon dive into the deep waters farther out, Thorn right on their heels. They both exploded from the churning waves a moment later, Thorn’s unbridled joy deafening in both your minds.

Murtagh smiled before returning his attention to you, his eyes lit up with so much adoration that you thought you might burst. You stepped out from the warm circle of his arms to tug him another few steps forward down the beach, right into the oncoming surf.

He sucked a sharp breath through his teeth as the cold water splashed over his toes.

“You’ll get used to it in a minute,” you said, smiling up at him.

You staggered slightly as the undertow bit at your ankles, Murtagh’s hand reaching out to steady your arm. He gently pushed you a step forward and slid in behind you, wrapping his arms around your waist and burying his face in the crook of your shoulder. You closed your eyes, unsure how long you stood that way with the cool water hitting your feet every minute or so and Murtagh’s warm body enveloping you, your dragons playing in the water out in the distance.

Murtagh finally broke the silence. “Eragon should hold assemblies more often.”

“The beach usually only has a few stragglers this time of day,” you argued. “You could always come with me and D/N.”

“Mmm, you present a convincing argument, although I do like having you all to myself.”

You laughed. “Who else do you think you have to share me with?”

“A few of the younger students definitely look all doe-eyed at you.”

“Is that why you kissed me like that in the mess earlier?”

“Maybe.” You felt him smile into your shoulder. 

You chuckled. “I just want you, silly.”

Murtagh’s arms tightened around you. Another wave hit your feet as Murtagh lifted his nose to nuzzle into your cheek. You could feel him tense around you for a moment. 

“Murtagh?”

“Yes?”

“What’s wrong?”

He was silent. 

“Murt—”

“I love you.”

You twisted in his arms to look at him in shock. Neither of you had said those three words yet. You never doubted that he cared for you and you’d wanted to say those very words yourself for months now, but had been too afraid. After all the betrayal and pain he’d been through, you just hadn’t expected him to say them so easily.

His eyes met yours, registering your silence as his face fell. “I…I’m sorry…”

His arms dropped from your waist and he turned to leave before you grabbed his shirt collar and yanked his mouth down to yours in a searing kiss, only parting when you ran out of air. “I love you, too,” you breathed, lips brushing his.

He relaxed and beamed, brushing your hair away from your face before pulling you so tight against him you may as well have been one body. His mouth was hot and hungry on yours, his fingers tangling with your hair again.

You smiled against his lips, pulling him several steps back before abruptly turning him straight into an oncoming wave. The force of it smacked the back of his knees just as you deftly slipped out of his arms. He tumbled forward with a cry of surprise, the wave submerging him as you burst into a fit of giggles. Another wave came, thwarting any attempts he might’ve made to get up. You waited a moment, blinking as you noticed he was no longer where he fell. Your smile quickly disappeared. “Murtagh?”

There was no response and still no signs of him. You turned towards the deeper waters, but still found no sign of a body. “Murtagh!”

Just as you turned to call to Thorn, a hand suddenly grabbed you and dragged you down. You restrained a scream so your mouth wouldn’t fill with water as you fell, a wave crashing over top of your head. When the water receded, you heard a familiar voice. “Ha! That’s what you get, you minx!”

You smiled and wiped at your eyes, pushing your soaked hair away from your face. You quickly scooted backwards, still sitting on the wet sand to find Murtagh sitting next to you with a triumphant smile on his face. His dark hair stuck to his forehead and his skin glistened, his eyes dancing with mirth as he pulled his sopping wet tunic from where it clung to his muscular chest and arms. You wanted to come up with a retort, or even fling some wet sand at him, but you were too caught up staring at him. He returned your gaze for a moment before his lips crashed into yours once more. The pair of you broke apart long enough to scoot several paces back and Murtagh carefully lifted you onto his lap.

You smiled as you felt the sea water tickle your toes once again, pulling Murtagh tighter against you. You could get used to this.


End file.
